I’m back from vacation!! It’s been so long Steepster haha..I did read a few notes and checked out the Black Friday hubbub a few times but didn’t feel like posting any notes while there. Let’s just say…I bought a LOT of tea haha. There are quite a few unique little shops out on the Island, and I didn’t even get to them all!
This shop was a purely random chance find lol, we had gone out to a birds-of-prey sanctuary and were trying to get back to the main highway, so the GPS sent us down this random road. Lo and behold…there is a tea shop there! In the middle of the Cowichan Valley! And what a place!!! The owner immediately provided us a taste of tea when we went in the rustic little shop, a delicious russian caravan with lavender! So good! It was brewed in a beautiful clay pot that the lady that also works there had made, she does pottery and helps with the tea. They are also growing their own tea right there and said it will be ready for selling in small quantities next year! Woot!
So this amazing little tea shop has tons of teas! I smelled so many and the guy really knows his stuff, it was great. I ended up getting this one and 2 others for myself, and the bf got 3 for himself too. I actually was torn between this tea, the EG lavender and their house blend called Persia – a blend of darjeeling, ceylon, EG and lavender. They all smelled delicious, but this one won out – it has such a bright lemony citrus scent, no soap just pure citrus goodness! They apparently use real Bergamot oil, no synthetic or artificial stuff.
As for the flavor, this is a great EG! The citrusy bergamot is so bright, it almost tastes like a lemon black tea rather than an EG! It’s a unique one, that is for sure, and it is quite drinkable in my opinion. I had it quite a few mornings on our trip, and am having it at work this morning in a poor attempt to wake up and focus haha. Post vacation blahs…yeah, I’m not all here yet. Hopefully I get back into focus as I have a meeting this afternoon lol.
Anyways, overall this is a pretty good EG tea. I am so happy I found this little shop and can’t wait to try the others I got from there too! Check them out online too :)
Flavors: Citrus, Lemon
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I met the owner at a farmers market in Nanaimo a few years ago! Too cool :) Glad he’s doing well. Thats pretty exciting he will be ready to sell small batches next year. When I met him, he said it would be about 2 years until production. What a small world.
Haha that is a small world! Yes it will be very limited probably only in store too I imagine but still neat that there is some tea growing in Canada! He was very enthusiastic and helpful with tea selections, next time I’m out there I will definitely head back to pick up some more varieties :)
Growing their own tea?! That is so cool. I want to do that.
Also, I just want to remark that I thought Verdant’s Earl Grey also tasted rather towards lemony – I wonder if real, good bergamot has that lemony essence? I can’t say I’ve tasted lemon in most other EGs I’ve had, but who knows what they used to flavour the tea.
I think they might be the only company in Canada so far that is actually growing their own Camellia Sinensis, but I could be wrong. It’s pretty cool anyways :D
I still have to try Verdant’s EG! Was going to order it on BF but I really have too much tea, especially EGs now, that I can’t justify it yet. I haven’t tasted lemon in many other Earl Greys either, my favorite by A&D is much different too, it’s more of a malty, robust type of EG, not lemon and citrus. It’s interesting how there can be so much variation among them, especially my two favorites now! It could definitely be a trait of the bergamot they used though. Or maybe the base tea brings out different flavors from the bergamot? Regardless, tis good! :D
I only picked up the 7g size, since I clearly also don’t need more tea. I haven’t tried too many straight EGs, mostly EG creams, but the lemon note really stood out this time. Interesting that something so seemingly basic can be so varied.
I met the owner at a farmers market in Nanaimo a few years ago! Too cool :) Glad he’s doing well. Thats pretty exciting he will be ready to sell small batches next year. When I met him, he said it would be about 2 years until production. What a small world.
Haha that is a small world! Yes it will be very limited probably only in store too I imagine but still neat that there is some tea growing in Canada! He was very enthusiastic and helpful with tea selections, next time I’m out there I will definitely head back to pick up some more varieties :)
Growing their own tea?! That is so cool. I want to do that.
Also, I just want to remark that I thought Verdant’s Earl Grey also tasted rather towards lemony – I wonder if real, good bergamot has that lemony essence? I can’t say I’ve tasted lemon in most other EGs I’ve had, but who knows what they used to flavour the tea.
I think they might be the only company in Canada so far that is actually growing their own Camellia Sinensis, but I could be wrong. It’s pretty cool anyways :D
I still have to try Verdant’s EG! Was going to order it on BF but I really have too much tea, especially EGs now, that I can’t justify it yet. I haven’t tasted lemon in many other Earl Greys either, my favorite by A&D is much different too, it’s more of a malty, robust type of EG, not lemon and citrus. It’s interesting how there can be so much variation among them, especially my two favorites now! It could definitely be a trait of the bergamot they used though. Or maybe the base tea brings out different flavors from the bergamot? Regardless, tis good! :D
I only picked up the 7g size, since I clearly also don’t need more tea. I haven’t tried too many straight EGs, mostly EG creams, but the lemon note really stood out this time. Interesting that something so seemingly basic can be so varied.